Jaguar To Make a Come Back With Small C-Segment Luxury Sedan?

If you are a Jaguar fan then the X-type is no stranger. Jaguar tried to introduce the car about a decade ago to compete with the BMW 3-Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class—basically the entry-level luxury segment. The car was nice to look at from the inside out and a bargain with all-wheel drive. You might even remember the commercials where the snowplows drive behind the X-Type in bad snowstorms. That said, the car didn’t turn out for Jaguar despite a pretty long model run; this was mostly due to what could only be called a poisoning of the well in the early years with significant transmission problems. Fast-forward to 2011 and news from our partners over at MotorAuthority.com that Jag might be getting back in the C-segment game (see the concept car photo above for ideas Jag has been kicking around).

Last week, MotorAuthority.com reported that the next new Jaguar sedan might be called the XS and play in the C-segment arena. Even better is that it is reported that we might see the first glimpse of XS at the AutoRAI in Amsterdam prior to the New York and Shanghai auto shows. Current market intelligence suggests that the new C-segment car would be targeted to compete directly with the C-Class (a car we just reported on), 3-Series and other mid-size luxury sedans like the Audi A4 and Buick Regal. Adrian Hallmark, Jaguar’s global brand director, has been noted to say that this type of offering from Jaguar would be “elegant” and be designed with “great technology.”

So what can we expect in terms of models and powertrains? Right now, we know that there are rumors of the Sedan, a Wagon and Convertible. All three may be based on the XK platform and we are willing to make bets that the design will follow the design cues set by the XJ. From a powertrain perspective we would guess Europe will see a small four-cylinder, diesel with stop-start technology and hopefully a direct-injected turbocharged model that would come to the U.S. shores. If you just can’t wait, then some in the industry say the car could show up as soon as late-2013. Other suggest 2015 is more likely given the concrete details at hand.

Be sure to stay tuned for more details as we get them right here at AllSmallCars.com and watch for our tweets via our @allsmallcars handle.